E-course

Writing

Module 2 | Unit 8

Previous module:
Listening
Next module:
Speaking


IntroductionGetting startedTipsMore resourcesPractical tasksUnit testDownloads

Introduction

Writing has allowed people and societies over the centuries enabling us to transfer our thoughts, wishes, desires for someone to read them later, even long after we wrote them. What would we do without writing? Writing allows us to take notes, write emails, love letters , enjoy books and so many other things that make life wonderful! Writing is basically a life skill! Whatever you do in life, writing is always essential to communicate with others. You might think that successful writing can only be done at higher levels of language knowledge , but it can be very easy if you start writing small texts, notes, and messages. Nowadays technology gives us the opportunity to communicate with people from all over the world by writing, so don’t miss this opportunity.

Learning to write in a foreign language isn’t so different from learning to write in your language. Remember that you wrote simple sentences when you were a child, and now you could write a book if you wanted to!

Getting started

Tips

Tips to improve your writing skills

Writing skills are specific abilities which help us put our thoughts into words allowing people to communicate. Good writing needs to have correct grammar, good vocabulary and spelling.
Writing skill is an important part of communication in a foreign language.

1. Read

There is no magic button to write well immediately. The key lies in dedicating time and effort to getting better at this skill. If you read, you will take up a large amount of information consciously and unconsciously. For instance, verbal tenses, connectors, vocabulary, how those tricky words are written, etc. Read whatever you like, but in accordance with your level.
Reading is one of the most effective activities you can do to improve your writing. It sounds strange, but it is true. Those who read always have better language skills. Reading makes you more productive and gives you more ideas.
Reading exposes you to different ideas and different ways to express your ideas, you are introduced to various styles and registers used in your target language. After you are introduced to these things, learn to recognize them, and after analyzing them, it will be easier for you to copy them.

2. Start with the alphabet

Learning the alphabet of your target language is a step you mustn’t skip. Different languages have different alphabets and while most of the letters may be similar, there are languages with unique letters that don’t exist in any others. It is important to learn how to read these letters and how to spell them.
It is not without reason that children at school start with the alphabet, slowly copying shapes, letters, words and then sentences. It is impossible to be able to write a chunk of text, no matter how big or small, if you do not know the spelling rules of the language you are learning.

Learning different rules when it comes to spelling is an essential part of knowing how to read and write properly. Although not all languages have specific rules that apply to the entire language, like English which reads words moon and blood completely differently, there are many languages that do have common structures and rules that make the spelling easier and accurate. For example, in Croatian language the first lesson should be the alphabet and how letters are read. Croats write exactly the same way as they pronounce the letters of their alphabet. On the other hand, Italian and German have specific rules that need to be followed. Words containing “-ie” and “-ei” are always read the same way in German, just like there is a specific rule to reading and writing “ci” and “chi” in Italian. Learn these rules and you will know how to read and spell correctly!

3. Use online tools

While writing by hand is an invaluable method that has proven time and time again that it helps you retain information you are writing down, using online tools and resources available to us is also something we recommend. Do not exclude writing by hand, just add this element to your writing when it is done on a computer, laptop, or mobile phone.
What the online tools such as Grammarly and various online spelling and grammar checkers provide you with is instant correction of your mistakes. It is very useful to write down the mistakes you notice you make often and analyze them, this will make your improvement much faster. Don’t rely on the tool too much, just let it be a helpful friend on your learning process.

4. Choose what you write

It seems obvious, we know, write in order to improve your writing. But not only that, write what you like to read. If you enjoy reading cook books then it may be a good idea for you to start practicing by writing down your favorite recipes, if you enjoy reading travel blogs, write about your trips and journeys, if you are a person who watches a lot of movies maybe you can start a movie review blog and in the process help others choose what to watch. If you enjoy non-fiction, research the topic you are interested in and write about it. Some people are shy and would never dream of writing a blog or anything that another person might see. We suggest a more intimate type of writing for those of us who like to keep to ourselves. Start a journal in your target language, if you dream a lot you can even write a dream journal. Expressing your thoughts, frustrations, dreams and hopes might push you to learn new words and expressions, as we are motivated by anything we feel passionate about.

5. Focus on prewriting

Well! You got it! You have to write a reasonably large text. The size of a large text depends on your level. As you progress, something we call a large text can be 200 words long, but while you are in the beginning stages of learning, a large test can be 70 – 80 words long.
Plan and review writing. Both steps are crucial to express yourself in writing. Planning will help you think of ideas, organize your text and not forget anything. In spite of the time that you spend planning, you will save time writing and the result will be better.

Prewriting is always a very important part because it is the first stage of the writing process. It helps you generate ideas for your writing. First do a brainstorming session, write questions, do research, and make outlines of what you want to write about. Then create paragraphs and structure the essay in logical parts. Reread it! How was it? Right? Wrong? Try again. Now organize it and rewrite it clearly, add, delete or change some things, reread again! Finally, don’t forget to correct the language mistakes: spelling, grammar, vocabulary, punctuation, capitalization etc. If you don’t remember a word, just continue trying to describe what you want to say.

More resources

Still want to continue learning about the topic of this unit? Not to worry, we have made a selection of further resources that you can use if you would like to find out more. Just click on the links and keep learning!

  1. How to Master Writing in a Foreign Language
  2. 9 Hacks to Improve Your Writing Skills in Your Foreign Language
  3. How to Improve Your Writing Skills in a Foreign Language
  4. 8 Tips to Improve Your Writing Skills in a Foreign Language
  5. Writing skills in language learning

Practical tasks

Pick three children’s stories you like, those you know really well. For example Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel and Pinocchio. Children’s books tend to have simple vocabulary and pictures therefore making them easier to follow and understand. Also, reading travel blogs, or short Instagram captions may be a good introduction into your target language. If you are an advanced learner you can also try to read literature in a foreign language as this will help you improve all other skills as well.

Write down the alphabet of your target language and write down a word for each of the letters. Keep adding new words after each lesson. Practice writing the words you have trouble remembering.

As mentioned above, using online tools is very convenient and helpful but it may also be tricky. Sometimes we let the online tool think instead of us and we forget to notice all the mistakes that we have been making. Thai is why it is important to keep track of commonly misspelled words. Write them down and notice which words you have difficulty spelling, then practice writing them on another piece of paper. Create a separate place for these words and this will help you improve your spelling immensely.

 

Write three different types of texts. Write an informal email (an email to a family member or a friend) that is at least 100 words long. You can write to them about your day, about your foreign language learning, or about whatever is happening in your life at the moment that you want to share with them.
The next one is a blog. People usually write blogs about topics they are passionate about, about their interests. Do the same, if you really like cooking you can write about a technique you have discovered or a new ingredient you have never used before. Your blog can center around anything you already know a lot about or even something you want to learn. Make it at least 200 words long, if you are at a higher writing level make sure it reflects in the length of your text.
The last type of text is one that you may have the most use out of, write a job application letter. This is a type of text in which you introduce yourself to a potential employer. Write about your education, previous work experience. Tell them all about your strengths and your weaknesses. Write this job application letter with the job that you want to have in mind and don’t forget that this one needs to have a more formal tone of writing.

Prewriting makes your writing process much easier. Take a text that you like and identify its parts as introduction, the main body of the text, and the conclusion. Copy it in texts above from task 4. Now that you have checked your texts and approached them differently, notice what changes you have made and how much better your texts sound like.

Unit test